In June of 2009, DIGITS ran an extremely successful pilot program in 10 schools in each of the 10 Massachusetts Congressional districts. The schools that volunteered to participate in the pilot test represented a mix of urban, suburban, and rural settings and served children with a range of socio-economic backgrounds. The teachers who were recruited reported teaching a total of more than 400 students.
Ten STEM Ambassadors were involved in the pilot, and represented the following STEM sectors:
- Software, Computers
- Telecommunications
- Biotechnology
- Medical Devices
- Engineering
The STEMTech Alliance contracted with an outside agency to conduct an external evaluation of the pilot project to provide feedback on DIGITS activities from participating teachers and document the impact of the program on participating students. For the full pilot evaluation report, click here.
Teacher response to the DIGITS program was overwhelming favorable. They:
- Gave high ratings to the message, materials, and Ambassadors,
- Wanted an Ambassador to come back the following year,
- Said they would recommend Ambassador visits to others.
In the words of one teacher surveyed:
“I would enjoy having an ambassador coming into my class again. I think it is a wonderful way to introduce the students to a possible future career and at the same time help them to see how important math and science is in the world and in their future.”
Responses from student surveys showed:
- Increased interest in math, science and technology;
- Increased interest in math, science, and technology related after-school activities;
- Importance of taking higher math (Algebra II) and greater inclination to do so;
- Greater knowledge of STEM careers;
- Positive view of STEM jobs as interesting, fun and exciting.
“I learned that math and science can be fun and you will need it in the future.”
“I learned . . . what job I can do after learning math and science and about different technologies there are for helping people.”
Teachers can click here to sign up to host a STEM Ambassador and the DIGITS program.
For the full pilot evaluation report click here.
Teachers can click here to fill out an evaluation survey after a STEM Ambassador has visited the classroom.
